BLUE TONGUE SKINKS

Hello! I am new here. I have had my lovely Indonesian BTS for almost 2 years at this point in a 40 gallon glass terrarium, and I'm planning on ordering a PVC cage from Animal Plastics to upgrade him. I plan on getting the T10 (48x24x15). For a basking spot and heat I plan to use floodlights like I currently do (I currently use 75 watt), but that's where my question comes in; Should my lights be inside or outside the enclosure?

I've seen you can ask Animal Plastics to put ceramic light fixtures in the top of the enclosure, and they also offer a circular 8.5 inch screen cut out that a heat lamp could be used with as well. I do not know which option to pick here. I worry that the lights may be too close to the basking spot if they are within the enclosure. Using my current enclosure as a reference, I measured how much distance between the skink and light there would be, and it comes to about 6-8 inches (with 2-3 inches of substrate and a 4 inch tall 75 watt flood), although I believe I would be using a smaller bulb and lower wattage as PVC retains heat better and the bulb would be closer.

This option would also have the pro of allowing multiple fixtures inside, like two smaller lights side by side, or maybe a CHE halfway down the cage. I am unsure exactly what I'd need as I don't know how well the bulb(s) would heat it.

I could also use the screen cut out and a heat lamp for the basking light. I worry about humidity escaping through the screen in that case, as I do have an Indonesian. I also worry about not having as many fixtures to heat the cage in this situation, but I also am not sure if they'd be necessary (but I always think better safe than sorry).

Apologies for the long post, I just want to make sure I make the right call before ordering this cage, as I want the best for my little guy. What say you all?

6" is a bit low. In my enclosures, the bulb is about 9" away. I think as long as you don't plan on stacking, putting the bulb overtop would be wiser. With the proper wattage, you should still only need one bulb and it'll still hold humidity pretty well.

mb606587 wrote:6" is a bit low. In my enclosures, the bulb is about 9" away. I think as long as you don't plan on stacking, putting the bulb overtop would be wiser. With the proper wattage, you should still only need one bulb and it'll still hold humidity pretty well.

Good to know! I was pulling out my hair trying to find a good answer on this, as I have no prior experience with PVC enclosures, and given how hard it is to have glass retain humidity and heat I suppose I was just being over cautious. Thank you!